More Bad Luck

Well gang Brett Donahue, the last Harley Davidson left in the rally had another run in with bad luck. We already know that a cager tried to take him out before the Maine checkpoint.

Now, the bottom end of his sporty decided to try and take him out of the rally by puking on him.

Two blows like this might dampen the spirits of a normal rider but Brett, part of the MWC, isn't going to let it keep him down.

He's now headed to Cape Disappointment and then back to Denver on a rented Ultra.

That's two strikes so far Brett, lets go for the home run now..

Bob has posted the day 10 report .

We're getting close now.. This is where, as spectators, we move to the edge of our seats waiting, and waiting, and waiting...

Wrecking Crew and Weather..

Ron and Carrie Hanson posted some pic's they took of the Minnesota Wrecking crew during their visit to the Maine Checkpoint.

Joe from Tuscaloosa, AL posted some interesting info about traffic patterns as states try to dry out from Katrina.

"On the national TV news this morning, a correspondent reported that they left Tuscaloosa, AL for New Orleans, normally a 4 1/2 hour trip on I-59, and spent 17 1/2 hours getting to the New Orleans region. Because he was reporting from southern Mississippi, I surmise he never made it to New Orleans proper.And that route is all interstate.

He said I-59 was so cluttered with downed trees and other debris that it took them 4 times as long as that trip normally would take."

Lets hope that none of the IBR riders are taking that route.

Countdown

By Friday the riders and their bikes have to be back in Denver for the finish of this years rally.

It seems that it's been quiet on the newsfront for everyone as Bob Higdon compares the coordinators to mushrooms in his latest update.

Rider Paul Allison is trying to get his BMW repaired thanks to a clutch that didn't want to finish the rally. He's currently in Cabano, QC which is just north of Madawaska, ME. Today he's looking to get the bike towed to Quebec but that may not leave him enough time to get back to Denver. Let the coordinators know if you can do anything to help.

Duke and the 250 ninja are forging ahead despite a, likely, broken rib which resulted from a parking lot wrestlting match with his bike.

The sport-touring group has published some pic's from the main checkpoint for our viewing pleasure here .

More as it comes in..

Personal Ironbutt

Sorry about the lack of posts since Sunday. A server meltdown at work has kept me busy day and night doing my computer IronButt.

Now back to our regularly scheduled program :-)

The web is filled with updates today but I tell ya, with all the gadgets this gang has on their bikes I thought there would be more real-time updates.

Some of the updates that have been posted are..

• Bob has Updated us with the Day 8 Report
• We also get to see the Leg 2 Bonus listing from their site or a converted .pdf file.
• They also posted the most recent Scorecards for us to see.
• The second leg statistics Ted compiles are now online.
• Bob Lyskowski posted a bunch of pictures of the riders at his gallery.
• Another gallery has been posted from the Maine checkpoint.
• The Ninja 250 gang has posted some pic's from the Main checkpoint also.

One thing I noticed is that there are going to be some hefty bonii grabbed on this last leg. Each rider needs to have 60,000 points to be considered a finisher. There are 15 riders with under 30,000 points after the Maine checkpoint. These folks are going to have to grab some serious points to wrap this up.

Rebecca is one of these 15 riders but she's still smilin . She also had a nice "Where is your KEY?" reminder written in grease pencil . She was also quoted as saying "my waterproof jacket, my waterproof riding pants, and my waterproof boots all leaked during the hardest rain I've ever ridden in. I actually poured water out of my boot! Luckily, it wasn't windy." All that and she's still smilin.

Rob Nye's hair seems to be growing back after his pre-rally shave.

Duke is movin right along on his 250 Ninja and is heading west out of Canada.

Tom and Rosie Sperry have dropped quite a bit from the first scorecard so we'll probably see one heck of a charge from them on this leg.

The Minnesota Wrecking crew is running for the front positions. Eddie James is sitting up in 5th place and a lot of the gang has moved up to the top 15 positions (sawwweeet).

Someone posted a link to a webcam at the Confederate bridge. The Bridge joins the provinces of Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick, Canada. Random sightings of riders have been flying around so sit back an keep your eyes open..

I know what I'll be doing now that the server is back up and running ;-)

More pic's

Bob Lyskowski places some pictures of the Maine checkpoint for us to look at.

What's with everyone smiling?? It looks like they might have taken Lisa's advice and gotten some rest on that leg.

Latest news

The Day 7 update has been posted at the IronButt Site.

Brett Donahue was run into a median last night by a truck. I was at the Team Strange night in Niobrara when Brett won the brightest lights contest. If those lights were on there is no way that driver can use the excuse that they didn't see him.

David Mishalof has retired for personal reasons but was kind enough to post his pictures for us to view.

With all of the warnings about rest before this last leg, it will undoubtedly be the hardest and where we may see the largest shuffle in standings.

Farewell and Flashbacks

Farewell: Today Mike Sentry has decided, for safety sake, to end his 2005 IronButt ride. Below is the notice that was posted on LDR. He had already had the wheel welded but was having problems with wobbles.

"Mike Senty, riding a 1981 Goldwing with EML sidecar and a cracked rear wheel has decided to head for home. Thanks to everyone for your suggestions for a new rear wheel.

He decided to be safe and call it a day. He made a monster ride from Denver to Key West to Denver and on to St. Louis, all with a cracked rear rim! That's riding in the true IronButt spirit.
Good Job, Mike!"

Flashbacks: The gang over at the ADV riders has posted an interesting series of photos taken at the start of the original IronButt event .

How about in the 2007 IBR there be a class for any of these guys that want to come back and try it again?

Rally Mode

I realized last night that, although I'm not riding in the rally, my mind seems to have nothing but this years rally, motorcycles, and riders on it.

I watched a movie this weekend titled "The Ring 2" which is of course a sequel to "The Ring". I won't go into details but at one point some scenes took place at a lighthouse. Immediately my mind began to wander. Wondering if it was a bonus location, picturing Rebecca, Tom, and Rosie running back and forth as the tide rose to try and get the bonus points. Good thing there were no shark, right RV ;-) ..

Then, last night going to meet some friends from Montana for dinner I had to turn and check every motorcycle I saw for fuel cells or any hint that the driver may be on the IBR. I'm about 40 minutes from Madison WI and according to some of the Star-Traxx tracking some of the riders were headed this way. As of now, one bike still seems to be sitting in Madison, hopefully just taking a rest bonus.

According to Bob's report of day 6 Eddie James is in some serious pain. It makes you wonder if riding the GS would have been a better mount considering the injuries he sustained in the last IBR. If one thing is for sure about the selection, Eddie will give 200% to make it work. While we are on the subject of Eddie, does anyone know who's driving the GS in this picture? It looks alot like Eddies but he's driving is K1100RS.

Tom and Rosie Checked in from the road on the way to Maine and pleased with their effort so far.

Duke Dunsford has paired up with Brian Boberick since they are riding the same route to Maine.
This leg seems to be just a slab-blast out to the checkpoint with few options for bonus points. The basic route is about 2075 miles and 32 hrs according to Mapquest. According my my math they have 62 hours to get there so any bonus point would probably have to be close to the route.

Of course, being directionally challenged I could be completely wrong. We'll know more by 11am on Monday.

Moving Right along

Reports in for Duke Dunsford from the 250 Ninja gang at about 11am:

"I spoke with Duke a few minutes ago. He is halfway across Kansas, and things are much better today. He's still getting passed by bikes in the field, but he's quite happy with the speed he's making. His last tank of fuel produced 49 mpg, so he does have to stop more often for fuel. Last night he was complimented by George Barnes (1999 IBR winner) about how organized his fuel log was. Today he's riding tank to tank at around 300 miles per tank. "

Some energetic fans filmed Duke at the start of the rally.

Motorcycle Mania heads East

With leg one behind them most riders pressed on last night or in the weeee hours of this morning. Unfortunately, Bill Crittenden on the Boss Hoss would not be one of them. Unfortunately he overslept to a point where there was no possible way he could make it back to Denver. If the Screaming Meanie wasn't on Bill's list of must haves, it may be now. I was really looking forward to what, in my memory of the iron butt would have been the first Boss Hoss to finish.

The IBA has posted the Day 5 report along with the first legs Rider Scorecards for our viewing pleasure.

The MN Wrecking crew is moving right along with one if it's founding fathers, Eddie James, running all the way up in 4th position. Mark Kiecker is followed closely by Jim Winterer on his Suzuki DL650, a far cry from his Yamaha SR500.

Hey Jason, do you see who else is in the top 10? That's right Tom and Rosie Sperry, riding two up, are in 6th place on their BMW 1150GS.

This next leg will be interesting. It's quite obvious that organizers have obtained some antimatter from some unknown source, combined it with the phrase made famous by journalist Horace Greeley "Go West, Young Man", and come up with bonus locations that are causing the motorcycles to Go East.

Personally, I'm excited to see them swarm to the East in masses. This means there is a possibility there may be some bonus points in my area and I may actually have my house used as a resting/refueling station. Time to turn the volume up on the phone..

Ted Timmons has posted some interesting statistics of the first leg. He's compiled a list of rider efficiency and a number of different statistics compairng the bikes. BMW has the greatest number entered with Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Harley, Kawasaki, Boss Hoss, Triumph, and Vespa following in that order.

More to come I'm sure..

Leg 1 update on Rebecca

Well gang, she made it back safe, sound, and probably smiling. Those of you familiar with motorcycle endurance rallies probably know a very important rule about preparing for a rally such as this. The rule, which is important enough to be in the top five of the IBA's AOW, is very simple "Avoid adding accessories or doing maintenance immediately before a trip."

If anyone is keeping track, she has mounted new driving lights, torn her fuel cell apart to have the frame welded and re-installed, continued problems with her directional, and now had a key cut. To most the key may seem like a small deal, but when combined with the other misfortunes, it's just one more thing to add to the mental stress of the rider. Let’s just hope that they tested the key after making it..

Enough of me typing what happened.. Here is her report of the events thus far.

"My first leg route took me through Washington, Oregon, and down the Pacific Coast to I-80 and then back to Denver. The redwoods and the ocean were beautiful and I had a great time. Everything is all happening so fast and I really need to work on my riding efficiency for the next leg. So far, I've ridden 4029 miles and I have 19480 points. The only bike issue is another turn signal bulb went out. So far, so good.

I'm pleased to be surrounded by such incredible people. I lost my ignition key (more on that in a second) and Paul and Voni Glaves found a key blank and had my spare duplicated while I slept at the checkpoint in Denver. Thanks!

The lost key is, indeed, quite a story. The rally book clearly stated that the Battery Point Lighthouse in Crescent City, CA would only be accessible until 1:30 due to low-tide, but I showed up at 1:45. Tom and Rosie Sperry arrived too, so the three of us shucked our riding gear as best we could and waded across to the lighthouse. Getting there, we realized that we had forgotten our rally flags, so we had to wade back to get them. Once we were in position again, we realized that we had no film left in the cameras. It took another trip over and back to finally snag the bonus picture. Then, we still had to cross the water once more. By this time, the water was up to my hips!

This excursion left me with wet clothes to complete the rest of the first leg. Ugh. I was tired, wet, and grimy, all of which led to increased fatigue and diminished mental alertness. I missed a later bonus because of this.

Oh, and the key? It was in my pocket with my flag, so when I pulled the flag out, the key dropped to the ground and was never found. I got back to Denver early and tried to get some sleep, but I kept imagining that was hearing sirens, but when I got up to investigate, there was nothing there. I'll plan my route for Leg 2, and then decide if I need more sleep or whether to push on.

Thanks to everyone who is following my progress and wishing me well! I'll try to provide more frequent updates."

Cha-Ching

The star-traxx tracking has been updated to show all of the bonus locations for the first leg of the rally. You can view it at the normal rally tracking site and compare the routes taken to the bonus locations.

I don't know if they are going to wipe the slate clean but if they do you can view a static image of it captured on 08/26/05 at 12:30 C.S.T.

Which route would you have chosen??

Random sightings

As the drivers begin to converge on Denver more reports of sightings are coming in.

Vicki Johnston:
Kerry Willey's son spotted Vicki Johnston in Chicago and the brief meeting went something like this:
Just got a call from my son, who was driving down Michigan Ave., Chicago.
He sees a 'loaded bike' near Water Tower Place, he backs his car up & asks "Are you an Iron Butter?" She responds, "What, do I have it written on my forehead?".

She told him this is her 2nd visit to Chicago since leaving Denver, plus
been to No. Carolina & Key West.

It looks like Bob was right when he said we should keep an eye on her.

Rob Nye:
Dave and Tina posted yesterday that Rob had been to their house in CA and, having failed to read the warning signs, they fed and watered him so he's ready to go. Today the temps are up over 105 as he heads back to Denver.

Leg 1 final day

At this point everyone being tracked appears to be heading back towards the treasure chest in Denver. Why they picked a treasure chest I have no clue. I would have thought that some images of medieval torture devices like whipping posts, gallows, stretching ladder or knee screws would be more appropriate for the punishment handed out at the checkpoints.

The IBR folks have posted the dizzying bonus listings for let one in .doc format or you can find a converted .pdf version [ Here ] . In my relatively short list of endurance events, sprints compared to this marathon, I've seen some interesting bonus lists but this is amazing. Personally, I would probably need a full day just to sort through it but that's what seperates the Alpha riders from the rest of the pack.

Don Arthur Update: Don has taken the time to compose a letter to the Long Distance motorcycle community about the accident he and his BMW LT suffered. One thing should stand out to the readers of his letter PROTECTIVE GEAR! Just last week I was skimming through some forums and saw the acronym ATGATT and had no clue what it meant even though I've been riding since I was knee high to a grasshoppa. Don's situation is just another example how how true this is. Heal quickly Don..

News from the road

Today I got some email from Tom and Rosie Sperry's son Jason giving the thumbs up for their ride so far. I guess Tom and Rosie are riding two up on a BMW GS and still moving right along. They say it takes one heck of a driver to do this rally but can you imaging being a passenger on a motorcycle for this amount of time? Thankyouverymuch but not this guy.....

Jason let me know that "they have done some incredible rides, and done them all 2 up. They were the first to do the B-2-B-2-B Insanity (Mex-Can-Mex). They've also done the HyderSeek the last 2 years, 100cc, 50cc, etc..." Not bad for catching the motorcycle endurance riding itch after they turned 50. I think I met them at the BMW national this year going off the description of their bike.

They had left Astoria Oregon on Tue and were in Coronado this morning making their way back to Denver for the checkpoint no doubt. Go-Team-Go!!

You can see a picture of this increadable couple at the start [ Here ]

• Bob Higdon has added yet another blow by blow commentary of today's events to the IBA daily reports.
• It appears Rebecca had lost a key but knowing her she had one, or three, spares ready to take it's place. I just wonder if she really lost it or if the key had enough already and ran away :-)
• Bill Crittenden's and his Boss Hoss were sighted at a lighthouse in southwest Oregon...
• The Minnesota wrecking crew is chewing up the asphalt and each other from what it sounds like. If Tim is having problems with his fuel consumption, I'm guessing the smiley face on his tank will have another bullet hole in it after he finishes the rally.

For now, we wait and see what tomorrow brings..

Filler Up

This post just came over the Long Distance Rider list and I had to pass it on. Perhaps the average motorcycle rider saves money on gas over 11 days but not this group..
-----------------------------------

"Anyone else find it ironic that fuel prices in the states keep hitting highs
while the IBR is in progress?

Keeping it simple

90 bikes * 11,000 miles / 40? mpg = 24,750 gallons * 2.50 per gallon (price
on the internet for Denver) = $61,875 fuel cost
Drag down the mpg to 35 = 28,285 gallons * 2.50 = $70,714

Probably still cheaper than the therapy required after 11 days and nights @
Mike and Lisa's mercy =:^))"

-----------------------------------

Day 4

Well it looks like all of the riders being tracked by Star-Traxx that went to Florida got the heck out of town fast enough to avoid tropical storm Katrina for this round of bonus points. Only the event coordinators know if and when there are more bonii that will lure the riders back down south. You can bet one thing though, riders will be watching what the storm does as it come inland..

• The Ironbutt has added the 4th update of the rally to their website.
• The SabMag gang has posted some pictures and commentary of Doug C as he gassed up in South Carolina last night. He's all grins in those pic's. Gooooo Doug!!

With Friday, and Checkpoint #1 just around the corner I'm sure there will be some great updates and photos from the riders and I for one CAN'T WAIT!!

Day 3 Rebecca Update

Rebecca has checked in according to a post on the Wisconsin BMW Club message board.

She text-messaged this morning.
She wrote, "In NW US. All is well!"
Thank Goodness she is away from Key West and Trpical Storm Katrina.

GO RV GO!!!

Are Lisa and Mike working with Mother Nature?

Say it ain't so.. It looks like this morning a new Tropical storm, Katrina, surprised everyone and appeared in the Bahamas and is heading towards the Florida Coast.

AP: A 200-mile stretch of Florida's east coast from the Seven Mile Bridge in the Keys north to Vero Beach was under a tropical storm watch, meaning tropical storm conditions were likely within 36 hours.

Tropical Storm Katrina formed Wednesday morning in the Bahamas and moved toward Florida, threatening to hit the state with winds of 70 to 75 mph and heavy rain when it makes landfall Thursday.

The storm is expected to slowly cross the state and could cause flooding as it dumps a foot of rain or more in spots before heading into the Gulf of Mexico.

To quote the King Arthur and the Knights from Monty Pythons Holy Grail " Run Away! Run Away! "

After thinking about it, Hurricanes DO relate to the whole water theme that this years IronButt is rumored to be following so it's possible this is all part of the rally masters grand plan...

Day 3 is here

As day three begins, different message boards, mailing lists, and private emails are buzzing with action. Personally I know I get excited every time I hear the "New Mail" bell go off on my computer.

Here are some of the updates to the rally for day three.

• Bob Higdon had added another daily report to the IronButt site
• There have been reports of riders spotted throughout the United States. Like this was any surprise to any of is. I especially like this report
  "8/23 @2145 @ turnpike and sr 80 west palm beach fla:
  bmw gs, white tank, ca plates, silver helmet, windshield, factory bags, black and blue panels riding suit, yellow hi-viz strip horz across back... driver nervous about red pick up following him."

Rider Tracking:

What's interesting to see with the rider tracking is the mileage traveled so far. Some riders are just over 1,000 at the time of this post while others are over 2,000 already.

• Basic tracking of the riders with star-traxx can be done [ Here ]
• Advanced tracking using the riders name can be done [ Here ] and selecting "Iron Butt Rally" from the drop down box.

Pictures Updates:

• Norm Grills has posted two of his albums for our viewing pleaser. One of them is pre-rally and the other is the bikes at the start .
• Ira has postes some from the start .
• I had the pleasure of meeting "The other Critter" in Omaha. This guy is driving a Boss Hoss on the rally[ Pic ].. OUCH!! My pocketbook just shivers every time he gets gas :-)
• Some last minute prep on Eddie James and Rebecca Vaughn's bikes.

Don Arthur Update

From the LDRider List:

"A police officer in Escondido, CA credits the Telelever with saving his
life when he broadsided a car and instead of ending up in the side of it as he felt he would have on his previous patrol bike, was thrown completely over the car.

Don has a separation fracture in his right shoulder, three separation fractures between ribs and sternum, and three cracks in his right pelvis. He said the pelvis is the most painful. He feels he will be in the Hospital for approx. 10 more days. He is in good spirits, but pretty exhausted. He is just very happy, as we all are for him, that all his injuries are "healable ones"."

Any accident and the associated injuries are terrible but knowing that Don's injuries are healable is really a relief to everyone involved in endurance riding.

Higdon's humor after the start

Well, day one of the 2005 IronButt has come and gone for many of us watching anxiously from the sidelines.

Watching the progress of those riders tracked at http://rally.star-traxx.com/rallyview.asp?Rally=30 will be a lot like throwing 90'ish boomerangs from Denver. The bikes go out in all directions only to return back to rally central before beginning the next leg.

Bob has blessed us with another rally report at http://www.ironbuttrally.com/IBR/2005.cfm?DocID=12 .

After reading it I wonder, how will putting a minimum bonus point amount change the plans of the riders and their plans knowing that just finishing won't be good enough this year.

I guess time will tell..

Bob's wisdom Begins

Once again we are blessed with the infamous Bob Higdon's account of the 2005 Iron Butt Rally.

His first essay prose can be found [ Here ] ..

With the start scheduled at 10am today, it's time for the riders to put on their game faces and the rest of the endurance riding community to watch as the toughest of the tough compete..

Game on my friends..

Photo's and news articles

• Jim Owen's satellite tracking information has been updated.
• Read a newspaper article about Paul Taylor, the 2003 IBR winner.
• Here are photos from the hotel parking lot in Denver.
• Here are Dean Tanji's photos of IBR Check-in and Registration

Only one day to go

Rebecca's update:

"After the Saturday excitement/stress about the fuel cell, I found that I had a turn signal bulb out (not on the lens I'd replaced). Then, after my odo check, I noticed some fluid on my right boot. I couldn't find any leaks though, and it didn't smell like oil. It bugged me all afternoon, and just before dinner I went out to the bike to check my oil, and sure enough - the level was low just a bit. So, I did what any smart 1100RS rider would do - I went right to Paul Glaves to run it by him. :) Paul was relaxing after working as a tech inspector all day and I told him that we could look at it in the morning, but he insisted on looking at it right away. The diagnosis: the head is leaking at the valve cover gasket. Or something like that. Regardless, Paul says that it will take him 5 minutes to fix Sunday morning. *whew*

So fortunately, all of the issues that I've had have been able to be resolved, but it has me rattled a bit that I have had to deal with so many things here in Denver. I really just wanted to get here and be done with the bike. I'm really grateful to Bill and Paul for their help. I'm also very grateful to Dale for the loan of the 910s."

Rebecca's update

Saturday 08/20/05 (day -2) - Rebecca's update:"Tech inspections and registration today. Basically, a LOT of standing in lines. Someone mentioned that it was like being in the Army. The nice thing about standing in all of these lines is that you get to meet and talk to the people standing next to you. I met some new friends today and got to catch up with some old ones. DeVerne did my inspection and he looked over the bike, the cell, checked my VIN # against that listed on my insurance, checked my helmet, etc. It was the most intensive tech inspection I've ever been through, but also possibly the smoothest since I've been preparing for it for so long and I was ready. Then I went out for a short odometer check - it felt good to take a ride.
After the odo check I was directed to a short seminar, then I signed some forms, got my tshirt, pin and hat, and I was videotaped giving a release statement. The final line took me right to Mike Kneebone himself - he and his staff looked over my forms, double checked everything, and pronounced me registered. Whew!

If all of this sounds like a big deal, it is. This is The Big Show. The long lines and waiting don't bother me at all. It's incredibly exciting, I feel so privileged to be here, and I'm having the time of my life.

Tonight I'll have dinner with friends, but I've been warned that tomorrow is a 'business day' with final preparations, mandatory riders meetings, the opening banquet, and hopefully a good night's sleep. We start our 11 day adventure on Monday morning at 10:00 Denver time."

Don Arthur Update

Bean and I finally made it to St. Joseph, MO.

We got to Heartland Regional about 21:30 and there was a doctor waiting by the entrance to escort us straight in.

Don is doing very well considering what he has been through. He does not remember much. I think he was knocked out for quite awhile. He is amazed by all of your well wishes and said to say Hi to everyone.

His is in a lot of pain, and sleeps a lot, which is good. He is getting better and the doctors are happy with his progress.

Bean is a real trooper and as a nurse, she truly understands all aspects of what is going on. I'm very impressed with how well everyone is taking care of our buddy.

Don has nothing but good things to say about the hospital and it's staff. As you all know, that is very high praise.

Guys, Don had someone go to the bike and take off all of his important gear. Tomorrow I will ask him what he wants done with the bike. Don is going to be med evac'd back to Bethesda as soon as it is safe to move him. They do not yet have a date for that. I will keep you posted.

Best,
Coni Fitch

Rebecca's update:

Friday 08/19/05 (day -3) - "I left Milwaukee early on Thursday and had a good day of riding, but was tired from not getting enough sleep Wednesday night. The ride was also frustrating due to an audio problem with using the custom earbud speakers with the mp3 player and the radar detector.

I took a nap at 5pm, which helped me identify that the audio problem was operator error...the radar detector has two volume controls, and I had basically muted the sound by adjusting the knob with a gloved hand. Afterwards, I had the best ride through western Nebraska and eastern Colorado...It is SO gorgeous here!

This morning, I awoke to a phone call from Dale Wilson (IBR Tech Inspector) saying that he had a pair of PIAA 910 driving lights to loan me, and could I be down in the parking lot in 10 minutes. A couple bolts/nuts/etc. were needed and a trip to Home Depot was planned, and then someone noticed that one of the fuel cell mounting bracket welds was broken! Luckily, the fuel cell manufacturer, Bill Macavan was at the hotel to help with the tech inspections, and he made a quick phone call and summoned a local welder with a truck to come fix the weld in the parking lot! This was all arranged before I could return from Home Depot. How's that for service?
Somewhere, I also lost a tail light lens, but the local dealer has one and I'll run and pick it up today. I also want to look for a pair of vented gloves, because they'll make riding much more comfortable in the heat.

Riders have been arriving by the minute, and everyone has been asking each other,"So, are you ready?" I suppose people are just nervous or tense. Anyway, there's a roped-off section of the parking lot marked "2005 Iron Butt Rally parking only" and it's filling up fast. It's thrilling to be here!"

Don Arthur News

Coni on the LT group. :
I am very sorry to say that our buddy Don Arthur was involved in an accident on his way to Denver. A lady pulled out in front of him and then he went airborne. (Forgot he was in the Navy.)

He suffered a cracked pelvis, broken shoulder(?) and injured sternum, but the good news is that he is in Stable Condition. I even got a voice mail from him and he sounded good.

Bean Arthur has given me permission to post this and tell you all that he is at the Heartland Regional Medical Center St. Louis, MO.. Needless to say he is in ICU and nobody is talking unless you are family. I am on my way to MO tomorrow and will keep you all posted.

Keep Don in your thought and prayers. Needless to say he is in ICU and nobody is talking unless you are family. I am on my way to MO tomorrow and will keep you all posted. Keep Don in your thought and prayers.
Coni

Rebecca's on the road.

08/17/05 - Rebecca's update:
"I am leaving in the morning for Denver and the start of the 2005 Iron Butt Rally. Mainly I'm just anxious to get on the road and I am looking forward to the 1000 mile ride tomorrow to calm my nerves, and to think about the 11 day adventure that I have ahead of me. I spent today wrapping up some jobs, made a visit to BMW Milwaukee, and doing the last few things on my checklist.
Tonight, I will have dinner with my mom, pack the bike, take the garbage out and go to bed. The time since finding out that I got a spot in the rally has flown by, and I have had so much support and I am so appreciative - especially to my sponsors and to all of you who have taken the time to help along the way or who have just taken the time to wish me well. I feel like you're all riding with me. "